


Evolution

by ReadingFix



Category: omegaverse - Fandom
Genre: Alpha - Freeform, Alpha Males, Alpha/Beta/Omega Dynamics, Claiming, Claiming Bites, F/M, Heat Cycles, Hurt/Comfort, Mating Bites, Omegaverse, Slow Burn, Smut, alpha/beta/omega, alpha/omega dynamic, in heat, omega - Freeform, omega female
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-05-21
Updated: 2018-11-16
Packaged: 2019-05-09 21:43:55
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 14
Words: 18,901
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14724122
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ReadingFix/pseuds/ReadingFix
Summary: Omegaverse. Lana is on the run whilst trying to piece together exactly what happened in the Before time, all whilst trying to avoid what modern society has become. She is an omega and will stop at nothing to hide herself from Alphas. But ever since he first smelled her, one Alpha knows she is his destiny, and will stop at nothing to find her.





	1. Chapter 1

It had started with whispers. Exchanged gossip overheard by the higher-up's wives over brunch, a gathering of anxious parents at the school gate as the whispers trickled down from the ever-listening ears of servants. Then people started going missing, more reports creeping onto the evening news, flyers littering the streets a constant reminder all was not well. A few weeks later the testing began. With little warning apart from a few news reports, hordes of soldiers swarmed schools, blood samples forcefully taken from children as young as 4, university campuses transformed into walking med centres.

Outrage sparked violent protests, which acted as a smokescreen for the other increase in violent crime, the violent kidnappings of both men and women, the increase in gang prevalence and the increase in hospital patients suffering fever and severe abdominal pain, the increase of domestic abuse. Curfew was put in place, schools segregated into Male and Female in order to stop the violence that seemed to suffuse the very air, that seeped into every corner of society.

The protests stopped abruptly once the broadcasts began. The violence paused in an unnatural way. The streets became bare, the only faces to be seen were those on the old missing posters that stared out from lampposts with haunted eyes. No one missed the first broadcast that occupied every screen in the country and linked together the snippets of truth that the abundance of rumours held.

The day the broadcasts began, was the day everything changed. The day the broadcasts began, was the day that Evolution started again. The day the broadcasts began was the day a whole nations fate was sealed.

Lana listened with a rapt intensity as she finished listening to her grandmother speak of the before time. Nothing had changed about that; the one constant of her life was that she always ALWAYS wanted to learn more about what had happened. About why from a little girl she had been shunted from place to place, with a new hairstyle every few weeks. About why they'd had to leave her mother behind. She sighed and stood, kissing her grandmother's cheek as she left the room. Maybe it was best not to dwell on the past, her life was as it was, and hiding was her life.

Dreaming of a past where she would have been at university by now, of where she would have had scars on her knees from falling off a bike instead of being hunted down by dogs, would not help her situation. She snorted at that thought, as she walked along the narrow corridor to her own room. Dogs, I wish it were dogs that hunted me down, multiple bite marks were better than that one dreaded claiming bite.

Her fingers automatically traced the curve of her neck where her shoulder joined, feeling the goose bumps that had formed on her skin at the thought of sharp teeth tearing into her tender flesh during a heat.

She had been 14 at the time and had been out fetching supplies. Technically it was less fetching and more sneaking as she had slipped off to get a cake for her grandmother, to celebrate her 65th birthday. All was fine getting to the store. It was even fine inside the store; the manager didn't look twice at the girl in the scruffy chuck tailors and the knee length summer dress. It was fine exiting the store; one of the guys hanging about outside, as teenage boys are bound to do, even held the door for her so she could carry the cake out with ease. She was in the carpark of the store, a summer breeze brushing against her bare legs, her smile broad from carrying the chocolate cake she had bought and thinking how happy her grandma would be when things suddenly became the opposite of fine. She'd just finished walking past the group of youths when the fever had started, and every eye from the group had zeroed in on her retreating back.

She'd stumbled not knowing what had caused the sudden sweating in her palms or on the back of her neck when the first cramp kicked in, her thighs suddenly becoming sticky. She continued walking quickly forward on wobbly legs, towards the highway she'd heard the first growl and the smack of a fist hitting flesh. She'd dropped the cake from suddenly numb hands and started to run, vaulting the small fence and pounding along a back road.

She'd broken several rules that day. First, she'd gone alone. Second, she'd not let anyone know where she was. The third rule she broke was the worst; she'd looked behind her. Lana closed her eyes against the memory, the cake being squished into warm tarmac by the gang of males all growling, eyes dilated and focused on their target; her.

She'd tripped over when she'd seen that sight. Tripped when she'd seen the bloody shirt of the teenaged boy in the lead. Tripped at the sight of the body on the ground behind them, oozing blood onto the summer sun warmed tarmac like the cake oozed chocolate filling.

She'd scrambled back up immediately, leaving blood from her torn hands and knees and worse, drops of her slick on the pavement below her.

She got up and continued running, ignoring the pain, ignoring the moisture between her thighs. Her belly had dropped as a car had come out in front of her blocking the way and she had stumbled again her brain freezing in place. The door had opened, and her grandmother had been there, and she'd run. Her grandfather had rolled down the window and the muzzle of his gun had peaked through the window before firing. She'd heard a body drop, and a few seconds later another shot and a howl of agony. She'd dived headfirst into the car, over her grandmother's lap and the door slammed behind her. She'd glanced behind her as the car squealed away, noticing more bodies on the ground. Her grandfather had been an Alpha Male even before the Alpha/Beta/Omega dynamic has existed. A ferocious protector with a terrifying aim to match, he protected his family to the very end. The headless bodies had faded in her vision as it sought out the bloody shirted teen of its own accord. Unlike some of the others who were still chasing after the car he was hunched down, fingers trailing through her blood and the drops of her slick. He's looked up then and their eyes had collided as he'd brought his fingers to his mouth and licked her essence. She'd sworn she'd heard his growl as his gaze became heavy lidded, the spark of lust and possession in his eyes evident even as she'd been driven away.

That had been the start of her first heat. It had very nearly ended in her being claimed by one stranger, if not torn apart by the rest in a mating frenzy.

It had taken 3 days to break, and 4 weeks til her grandfather would speak to her again. She'd had 4 more heats in the past 8 years, and only because those were unavoidable. Black market heat suppressants were rare and were becoming more so now that the government was becoming stricter on their production and monitoring the omega population. She lay on her bed wrapped in her blankets to try to keep the memory of her first heat at bay. She'd suffered through every heat alone, locked away, not daring to go out to find an alpha or beta to fuck her through it.

And through every heat the blue green eyes of the teenage boy had haunted her.

She shivered and looked at the calendar on her wall. It had been almost 2 years since her last heat and next month her heat suppressors would run out.

Here she faced a quandary. With her grandfather now dead, she only had her grandmother to depend on to look after her during and after her heats. Whilst still fierce as ever in her battle to keep her granddaughter safe, at the age of 73 the toll of the struggle had started to show.

They had to move straight after each heat Lana had had; despite their best efforts there was no way to stop the scent of it suffusing into the tight spaces their homes usually consisted of. This meant it would cling onto any clothing in the vicinity and if they went out in public carrying the scent, well, their carefully concealed existence would have been for nothing.

She decided then and there that she would not move her rapidly deteriorating grandmother from the relative safety of the cabin they called Home.

She had a month to decide where she would have her next heat, and how she would care for herself during and after. Just thinking of her grandmother trying to move Lana, who would be exhausted and unable to do much but sleep and eat, and all their worldly possessions half way across the country was enough to make her stomach drop. They had been careful the previous times yes, but part of not getting caught was pure luck. And now with only 2 of them left, their luck was sure to run out soon. If her grandmother was caught moving an Omega, despite being one of the first herself, she could be publicly executed as an example.

Lana shivered again in horror and stood up from the bed, moving towards her desk. There was one folder on it that contained everything Lana needed to know about the outside world and the dangers that existed for her and her grandmother.

First was an article dated the day her grandfather had died. "Rogue Alpha shot dead in standoff, takes 6 government officials with him". She traced her fingers over the photo of her grandfather. It was grainy from a security photo, but he still looked like how she remembered. He'd been moving the last of the things out of the place she'd had her last heat in when the feds had turned up. She knew they'd have tried to take him alive, to try and find the omega who had left her scent all over the small apartment, but he had refused. He felt he had failed his daughter, but he would never fail his granddaughter. The article said he'd tried to burn the place to the ground but didn't succeed. It then continued to go on about the dangers of "hoarding omegas" and how resisting always ended in heartbreak and death. She snorted, "hoarding omegas". That was one way to call what a man who protected his wife, daughter and granddaughter from being attacked by Alphas, or taken from him to be sold for either "a mate" which consisted of being a glorified broodmare to a rich alpha, or kept by the government for study, did. There was a small section at the bottom on his life in the "before time" as her grandmother called it. He had been a horse trainer, with his own company which had stables all over the country. All of that he'd given up to protect them all. Her grandfather had loved them more than life itself, and he'd looked at his wife like the sun rose and set with her.

Lana pushed the article aside and turned around, grabbing her jacket from the floor. It was time to find a place where she could go into heat safely, privately and alone. She was her grandfather's daughter, never having known the beta who was murdered by an alpha whilst he tried to get to her in heat mother, and she would protect her grandma with her last breath.


	2. Chapter 2

Max stood letting the beta woman suck his cock, but his mind was somewhere else. His mind was on the omega he had been hunting since he first tasted her as a seventeen-year-old. He groaned, his cock swelling at the memory of tasting her, and he imagined fucking her slowly, before pulling out to taste her pussy, wet with her slick and the tiny bit of blood that was combined in it. In his head she had never been with another man. He growled at the thought and heard the whimper of the beta as he thrusted harder into her mouth. He didn't care. He had been there when they found Roloph Tyne. He had smelt the room where she had been in. The nameless omega who he'd finally had a lead on. Lana Tyne. He wanted to shout her name to the hill tops. Her heat room had smelt divine; even more so for the fact there had been no smell of a man. No Male to touch her through her heat. No male would ever touch her ever again when he found her except him. Only him. He would fuck her until she was screaming for his knot. He was so close He ground his molars and grabbed the betas hair, forcing as much of his cock down her throat as possible, shooting his cum down her throat as he imagined knotting the brunette omega who'd haunted him with her scent for years.

He pulled out, the beta gagging before smiling up at him. "Max I've never felt your cock so hard before - I can't wait to feel it in my pussy".

"Not today. Get out"

"...but"

"Now Jessica! I have business to attend to, I don't have time to fuck you."

She got off up of her knees, her smile going from seductive to a sneer in an instant.

"I hope you never find an omega of your own you selfish prick! I'm done with being your little fuck toy. You don't even fuck particularly well for an alpha!" she hissed in his face.

Max's eyes darkened, blue eye going stormy.

"Jessica, I told you to get out". If she had been a smart woman, she would have heeded his warning and left. But she wasn't, and so continued to bait him.

"I'm not your omega, I do what I want because I am not yours to control! I am not mates to you, so I don't really give a shit about your pathetic feelings! It's so sad that all you have are fuckbuddies, that you've never even properly looked at a woman – did the testing fuck with your head? I hope if you do ever find an omega she'll see you for what you are - a worthless excuse of an Alpha who doesn't deserve the title and who could never care for an omega properly!"

Max roared, is hand jerking out and grabbing her by the throat and lifting her up, carrying her by her neck and throwing her out of his apartment. She hit the corridor wall with a sickening crunch and her mouth opened in a silent scream of pain; his hand crushing her windpipe had made her incapable of sound.

"Next time you insult me or my omega, you'll end up worse. If you were my omega you wouldn't be walking for days for your insolence. Go find some other alpha to suck up to. You are a pathetic excuse for even the lowest of omegas, and you are not worth a moment longer of my time".

Max slammed the door, still shaking with rage. Lana would be his. The beta whore was wrong. He would look after his omega. She would want for nothing. She would willingly obey his every whim. He breathed looking down at the strewn clothing on the floor, picking up Rebecca's clothes, opening the door and flinging them at the still naked injured woman. He shut the door and went straight to his office. His omega would be looked after by him; and it meant his Lana would not spend another heat without her alpha.

With this thought in mind, his breathing slowed, and he brought up all the listings of the black-market heat suppressant that had been found alongside Roloph's dead body. She must be running out soon, and he had a feeling she might risk buying them again. After all, he thought leaning back in his chair staring at his wall, which was covered in snippets of movements, and facts about Roloph and his family, she only had her ageing grandmother to support her now. He knew for a fact that any omega worth their salt would not put an elderly family member in danger. It went against an omegas nature, whether she knew about her nature or no. No, his little omega would have been stepping into her grandfather's shoes. She would be looking after her grandmother, even if that meant risking her own safety.

"See you soon my Lana" he said softly, all his previous anger gone as he looked closer at the blurry photo he had on his wall. It was her, from the side on brown hair blown halfway across her face hiding her eye but her lips were clear. She was smiling looking over at the blurred forms of her grandparents. Soon that smile would be directed at him, and he would have his omega at last.


	3. Chapter 3

"Where have you been going Lana?"

Her grandmothers voice stopped her in her tracks. She turned and saw her grandmother, arms crossed on the sofa, giving her "the look". Lana shifted from foot to foot. She HATED when she got "the look" from her grandmother. The only thing worse was when she had been very little and had gotten "the look" off her mother and grandmother, for stealing cookies that were fresh from the oven and burning her mouth.

"I've been going and getting supplies Gremar."

She tried to stare at her grandmother, trying to show she'd done nothing wrong and had nothing to hide. It worked as well as it had done when she was little; it hid nothing then due to the burnt tongue her grandmother had made her stick out, and this time it hid nothing as her grandma held out a small plastic bag.

"Oh, supplies hey? They weren't of the "heat den" variety, were they? Or perhaps the black-market stall that sells these" she shook the bag of little off white pills vicariously, the last few precious tablets bouncing off one another. "For instance?"

Lana shrugged off her coat and sat down next to her grandma, leaning her head in her shoulder.

"Sorry Gremar, I just didn't want to worry you. I wanted to show you I can look after myself now, and you. I'm not the foolish teenager anymore."

Her grandmother uncrossed her arms and rugged Lana down into her lap.

"Don't you think that using my nickname will get you off the hook now" Lana could feel the smile in her grandma's voice. "You need to tell me all, I can tell it's eating you up. I promise I'll do nothing but listen, oh so ancient one". Lana smiled onto her grandmother's lap at this, loving the way her grandma had tugged playfully at her blonde ponytail on her last words.

"You're right. I have been looking for a heat den, as my next heat is only in 2 weeks, as my heat suppressors only last that long; it was the last Pops got me. I've been struggling though; I can't seem to find anywhere safe enough to lock myself up. The only possible place is Pop's brother's house, but I don't want to use that unless it's a last resort. I really don't want to have it here...not because it's not comfortable...but because I don't want you having to move. I've noticed the hip Gremar. I know it's been paining you more and more. You wouldn't be able to pack like you used to or get me out of here if needed. And it always takes a few days for me to be able to do anything after my heat."

Her ball of anxiety started to shrink as her grandmother hummed, the vibrations soothing her more than the sound. It reminded her of her grandfather's purr. When she'd had nightmares as a child, and then into her teens after her first heat, bloodied alphas chasing her through her dreams, her grandmother had read to her whilst her grandfather purred. It soothes her to the marrow of her bones knowing that he was there if she woke, his comforting sound helping to wash away her fears and replace it with all the love that her family could offer.

"So, then my little fox, you then have what you think is your last option - more heat suppressants which comes with its own risk."

Lana nodded miserably. She hated being omega, hated that as a beta she would have been starting her second degree, that instead of a cabin in a forest she would be in a city, possibly with a partner who'd hold onto her at night. How she wished she could have learnt more about science.

"Well. It's quite apparent what you need to do."

She sat up, hair a fluffy mess from her grandmothers petting.

"What? What have I missed?"

"Well, first off you should dye your roots" her grandma gave her a half grin "shocking really at the state you've left it in - the brown is showing through, no man will believe you're a natural blonde if you don't keep your roots in check". She winked, the joke of the fact that any man would even get close enough to see her hair was actually brunette not lost on Lana.

"But most importantly my foxy lady, is not to underestimate your elders!"

With a flourish her grandma brought out a plastic container that rattled full of pills.

Lana's eyes widened in shock.

"Gremar! You shouldn't, it's too dangerous!"

"You tried to outfox the original fox darling; I've been at this game we call life a lot longer than you."

"But the motion sensors..they didn't go off when I was out...how did...?"

Her grandmother gave her a droll expression.

"And who taught you to set them up hmm?"

Lana blushed, feeling stupid.

"I love you Gremar."

"I love you too little fox. Now here, you have no need to worry and take needless risks with your safety, we can stay here longer, and you'll have more time to find a Heat den."

Lana's eyes filled with tears and she threw her arms round the older omega. "Thank you Gremar, I have no clue how you do it, but thank you".

"Always my little fox, always." Her grandmother pulled her into her lap again and resumed stroking and humming. Soon Lana was asleep though her grandmother stayed awake for much longer, haunted eyes staring into nothing, almost as if she looked long and hard enough, the future might reveal its secrets.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hi readers, I hope you’ve been enjoying so far! I’ll be posting another couple of chapters over the next few days and will most likely then be posting bi-weekly just because of Work getting in the way of writing (rude of it, I know).


	4. Chapter 4

Max grinned to himself. Today was a good day. His contacts on the black market had pulled through; the same pills that had been found at Lana's heat den house had been bought recently. There were only 3 suppliers in the country that sold those pills; 2 of which were made and supplied by his company.

Fortunately for him, it was one of his sellers that had recently supplied almost a years' worth of heat suppressors. This was not always unusual, the big dealers often sold them to smaller dealers who in turn sold them to frightened omegas who wanted to put off their heats. He snorted in contempt. Only omegas with pathetic Alphas, or worse, a beta mate would fear their heat.

Of course, his Lana was exempted from this; she was unknowingly saving herself for a heat with her Alpha. For he knew that she would never miss a heat with him. He purred to himself knowing that his lead was closing rapidly. Because whilst heat suppressors were sometimes sold in large quantities, they were not often sold to old ladies who were old enough to be Roloph Tyne's wife.

He picked up his phone and sent off a quick text to his driver, he wanted to leave as soon as he could. He grabbed his emergency bag that he always had packed with the essentials for several days travelling. This wasn't unusual, his role required him to often travel at a moment's notice but this time he also picked up another slightly smaller bag. This time was different. He was going to the black-market dealer who had sold the heat suppressors, and he was going to find everything he could about Shara Tyne, and the old lady would lead her to Lana. This bag had everything she could possibly need if he happened to find her. Spare clothes, soft blankets and toiletries. It also contained soft cuffs, a gag, tranquilisers and a med pack. He knew that no woman who had maintained her freedom for so long would come away easily from the life that she had lead for so many years, and he wanted to be prepared for her inevitable fight and any possible injury she may sustain. He smiled a self-satisfied smile. Yes, he would make her a good alpha, already showing her care and health were of the most importance.

Walking down the front stairs of his apartment complex he saw his driver waiting and felt a prickle of unease run up his spine. A fist flew into the side of his face and he felt his lip split on the impact. He reared backwards, momentarily stunned before getting himself into a fighting stance against his attacker. Upon seeing who it was he dropped his stance and put his hand to his lip.

"What the fuck Diego?!"

"I could say the same you. What the fuck did you practically strangle that beta for? What if she'd gone to the press? And what about our key important fact, Maxim, of NOT ABUSING WOMEN?!"

Diego was breathing heavily, his fists clenching and unclenching in rage. He was almost the same height as Max, with the same stocky build that spoke of hours in a gym, but there the similarities ended, where max was fair and blonde, Diego was as dark and black haired.

"Diego. Let me explain. I lost my temper I know this, but she insulted me and my soon to be omega. She called me a useless alpha who could not care for an omega." Max shrugged helplessly. "I lost my temper and shouldn't have done, but I told her to leave several times. It will not happen again. Besides, Jessica had already signed a non-disclosure statement. Our company is safe."

Diego relaxed slightly, his fists unclenching.

"You still should know better than to lose it...even if she did insult you in such a manner. But I swear if you touch a woman in such a manner again, I'll kill you myself. You should know better after what we've been through. I take it from your "soon to be" statement that you finally have a solid lead then?"

"Yes, I have. I'm leaving town to track her down now. I need to get some answers out of our contact." Max stride passed him to the waiting 4x4, opening the door and sliding inside.

Diego settled in next to him, slamming the door with more force than was needed, but was visibly calming down. "You're coming with me then?"

"Where? Do we need the other team on standby? How much do we know?"

Max smiled, Diego's use of "we" never failed to remind him of the bond they shared.

"Yes, if you could alert them when we arrive that would be of great help. And east, to the mountains. It appears my little one likes the mountain towns."

Diego nodded his agreement, fingers already moving over the keyboard of his phone.

Max relaxed into his seat. The noise was tightening around Lana, and she had no clue it was already round her neck.

They'd driven for 4 hours and were now at a petrol station in a superstores carpark. Max got out, cracking his back. He turned around to Diego, noticing his breath in the evening air.

"I'm going in to get supplies" he stated bluntly.

Diego's eyebrow raised questioningly.

"Of both kinds. Did you want anything?"

"Chicken. And a tool kit. My last one got..."

Diego paused, trying to find the right words to described how his favourite screw driver was currently embedded in the kneecap of an unfortunate business partner, and even more unfortunately could not be removed.

"Lost?" Max grinned, a wicked smile that flashed his sharp canines and caused a responding grin to break across Diego's face.

"I'll get you a new fancy set, I do know how much you love your DIY".

This caused Diego to chuckle, and reply "my perfect alpha, however will I let you go to an omega? Who else will bring me such kind and thoughtful gifts."

Max snorted and turned around, walking across the carpark.

He still had a grin on his face when he picked up a screw driver set and turned about, colliding with a body. He heard an "oof" of air, a thud of a body hitting the floor and a metallic tinkling as a can bounced off the ground.

He glanced down and saw a blonde-haired woman on the floor, a can of WD40 rolling away from the dropped basket. He chased down the can and hunkered down next to the woman, who was muttering under her breath about brick walls on legs having reversing lights.

He sighed remembering what Diego had said to him earlier about women and not hurting them, thinking that he might as well start trying to be nicer now. It might be useful to get some practice talking to women before he had a mate.

"Here. Are you ok?"


	5. Chapter 5

Lana sat on the floor of the superstore and cursed her luck. And she cursed the stupid man who was more like a brick wall on legs than a person. She felt like she'd been clipped by a truck - it would have been useful if the brick wall had reversing lights like a truck would.

It would save the normal non-abnormally large folk like her from being run over.

It had been a week since she would have been due her heat had her grandmother not brought her more pills. She'd been going crazy being hidden in the cabin and had decided it was safe to leave, as the suppressors were working. She'd come to the store to get rid of the irritating squeaking her door had suddenly started making since her self-imposed heat prevention lock in. She also wanted to stock up on nachos as she'd had a hunkering to make them all week, but of course she hadn't had the ingredients in the house.

So here she was, on her rapidly bruising arse in the middle of the store.

She froze as the low gravelly voice spoke to her from the hulking man bending next to her.

"Here, are you ok?"

Shit. He was an alpha. Shit shit shit shit. She'd spent years avoiding them, and now she'd walked right into one. Her palms instantly went sweaty as she reached for the proffered can.

"Fine. Thanks"

She stood up and his hand was there to help her up, the warmth of his palm radiating up her arm.

She flinched away from the touch, unused to anyone touching her apart from her grandmother. She peeked through her fringe and saw his eyebrows come down in a frown, and he released her arm.

"Are you sure you're okay? You came down pretty hard - is your arm okay? Is there someone here who can help you?"

He looked at her quizzically, eyes roaming her body and then looking away as if for her companions.

She glanced at him again and her stomach dropped. He had specks of blood on his shirt collar. Worse, his eyes were the exact same ones she'd been thinking about for the last 8 years. Blue green eyes caught her own and, in his gaze, there was curiosity and a dawning recognition.

"Thank you for the concern, but really am fine and I need to get going."

She grabbed her basket and tried to step round him, but he made no move to get out of her way. She was forced to brush against his body, which made her sweat even more, the fear making her nauseous, her hyper sensitive body tingling in contact with his heavily muscled chest. She wanted out of there. The blood on his collar and his eyes had taken her back to one of her worst memories. Lana sucked in a shaky breath. She wanted back in her nest where no Alpha would ever find her.

She stumbled, she had thought about her nest. She never did that unless she was either close to heat or truly terrified. He was there immediately wrapping an arm round her chest to prevent her from falling.

"Woah there, are you sure you're okay?"

She could smell him, a delicious scent that reminded her of the forest after rain and of something that was entirely man. She shivered...and felt him sniffing the top of her head. She tensed up and broke out of his grip.

"Leave me alone you creep!" She had learnt her lesson. She didn't look back but instead hurried away down the aisles, willing herself to walk and not sprint. She grabbed a multi bag of crisps, a litre bottle of water and a can of deodorant and paid.

She exited the shop and immediately sprayed herself before throwing the can in a nearby bin.

Lana was back in survival mode. Her lack of a normal beta scent might tip the Alpha at the store off, and she was risking nothing by him following her with his nose by her normal perfume mixed with the slightly off beta smell she was sure her sweat was releasing. She bent down as if to tie her shoelace and looked round carefully, just as her Grandpa had taught her. There was nothing out of the ordinary, no Alphas on the look out that she could see, no sleek cars designed for chasing down and capture. She breathed out a shaky sigh, grabbed the bag by her feet and stood, moving across the gradually emptying carpark.

She threw her items into the back seat of her car, and drove off carefully, normally and as if she was ordinary like any of the other shoppers. She knew she had to switch number plates as soon as possible and go off road. She couldn't risk them finding her or worse, her grandmother.

3 hours later her plates were changed, and Lana was back in her car, a heat suppressant pill between her lips as she reached behind her to grab the water she'd bought at the store. It had taken over an hour for the shakes to stop. It was another hour before she was sure she hadn't been followed. Lana took a sip of water and swallowed the bitter tasting pill. She was exhausted. As she sipped on the water she berated herself for being so stupid. She should have been looking where she was going instead of humming along to the tune in the store, imagining herself tucking into the cheesy nachos she was going to make herself when she got home. She mournfully looked back at her bag of groceries. There was no way she'd be able to melt the cheese out here. But at least she could still salvage the salsa, sour cream and guac.

As she spread out the dips on her dashboard, she thought back about the alpha. Had he been the teenager in the bloodied shirt who had chased her all those years ago?

She shook her head, snorting at herself. Of course, he hadn't. It was just the blood on his shirt and the fact that his eyes had been remarkably similar that had thrown her. That and she'd never been so close to an Alpha that big before. She'd never really touched anyone apart from her family before. She thought back, licking the remnants of a blob of cream off of her fingers.

The last time she had touched a stranger in that way was when her grandparents had taken her for ice cream when she was 16 and she'd had to push past a jostling crowd in order to make her order heard.

That was probably why her body was still humming slightly from the strange handsome Alphas touch. She froze at that thought, finger still in her mouth. When had the strange, DANGEROUS alpha suddenly become handsome. She'd never really thought of anyone that way.

A cold feeling settled in the pit of her stomach. What if the heat suppressors her grandma had bought were weaker than the old type she'd had. She side eyed the little plastic baggie that was on the seat next to her. They sat there innocently, their off-white colour making them seem almost yellow in the evening gloom.

They tasted the same, smelled the same and looked the same.

She shook her head. Her imagination was running away with her, as it always did when she was alone. She looked outside at the wilderness.

She'd been to this spot before when she'd been looking for a place 2 years ago to have her heat den. Her grandfather had taken her here and helped to set it up for her, as a just in case hidey-hole. 20 minutes' drive away there was a place set up to hide her car, along with a bundle of cash and petrol tanks. Close to that was the first of the booby traps she had set up where the first motion sensor was placed. Another hours walk, her and her grandfather had made sure there was no way in by vehicle, and there was an underground tunnel which led to a small cottage that was built into the mountain itself.

This, her grandfather explained, was where his brother had resided until his death. He had preferred to live in solitude, after having lost his boyfriend in the first of the violent clashes of the before time. She sighed, thinking about poor Ralph. She too had been cruelly treated by society, but she still couldn't imagine living alone for so many years, nothing but the howling wind for company.

She shivered, wondering again if it was the best idea to of driven off road into the forest at night.

Then she remembered the interest the Alpha had taken in her earlier, and decided that it was, far better than being questioned or touched by the beast of a man who stood a head and a half taller than her 5ft7 frame. Tomorrow she would go to one of her check points and leave a note for her grandma to prepare to move. A twinge of guilt formed in her stomach. If it wasn't for her love of Nachos and careless behaviour her grandmother wouldn't have to be uprooting her whole life again. But Lana could not risk discovery, and if her heat suppressants weren't acting in the same way as they had before, she couldn't risk going into heat at their current home. It was too close to the main highway.

She pulled the blanket out from the glove box and wrapped herself up, leaning her seat back as far as it would go.

Lana's last thought before slipping off to sleep was it was better to be cold than have to deal with the strange tingling warmth the Alpha had made her feel

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So there you have it, the two stars of this story have finally met...but they just don’t know how much of an impact their meeting will have. (That being said, Lana DEFINITELY felt the physical impact of it! Spoilers, it won’t be the last time her butt is made sore by max...) As always feel free to comment - I love getting feedback!


	6. Chapter 6

Max arrived back at the car frowning. The run in with the blonde had thrown him off. He never normally cared about other people, but there was something about thinking the woman had been hurt made his blood boil and a protective instinct he didn't know he'd had come to the surface.

He shook his head. The lack of sleep and stress was obviously catching up to him.

And yet...he stared down at the deli counter, it's display of meats and pies holding little appeal anymore. He couldn't shake the feeling that he should be following the blonde woman out and checking on her, running his hands down her body for evidence of injury, licking the bead of sweat that had trickled between her breasts, purring to calm the erratic heartbeat he could see pounding in her neck. Max froze from reaching down to pick up Diego's chicken.

Purring? What the fuck. He'd never had the urge to purr for anyone. Alphas only purred for family, mates, omegas in heat and, on rare occasions, to soothe injured or frightened children of all dynamics.

Max grabbed the chicken, paid and stomped outside, welcoming the chill breeze that rolled in from the mountains close by. His eyebrows drew together in a frown. The only person he had ever imagined purring for was his runaway Omega. Not even during his testing years had he thought about purring for any of his younger fellow test subjects. Rebecca's words flashed up in his memory; maybe something had broken in him when he'd been tested, maybe his sense of smell was off. It could explain why the blonde beta woman smelled slightly off and that his Lana smelled so delicious to him.

Diego stood up from leaning against the side of the car when he saw Max striding towards him. An eyebrow quirked as he took in Max's frown, the normal sleek stride that had stiffened up with underlying tension.

"So?"

"So, what?" Max growled. Diego's left eyebrow raised to join its companion on the right.

"so, what has you so tense? Doesn't happen to have anything to do with terrifying a girl half to death making her come walking out of the store, blasting on enough deodorant to cause a hole in the ozone layer in order to hide her scent and then trying to act casual bending down and tying her shoe as she checked out the entire place looking for follows?"

This time it was Max's eyebrow, and the corner of his mouth, that twitched up. Diego was an observant son of a bitch, but the fact that had caught his attention was the deodorant part.

"A whole can of deodorant? Interesting…"

Diego grabbed his food out of Max's hands and got back into the car. He was already finished eating by the time Max had put the rest of the items in the boot and slid in next to him. Diego, like Max, ate fast and made sure he ate as often as he could. Too many years of a controlled diet did that to a person. He passed Diego a bottle of water and cleared his throat.

"I knocked into her shopping. I decided to heed your words and attempt to help. She didn't smell quite right. She was twitchy..." Max smiled. "She also yelled at me to leave her alone. Can you imagine? Being rude to a Strange Alpha. Beta's are getting so ballsy these days."

"Where too next Sir?" The driver asked, interrupting his line of thought. He looked at Diego. He'd forgotten to even check his phone to see if his contact had given him an updated location. Diego however, clearly hadn't.

"Further up into the mountains. There's an old logging warehouse there where we'll be having a meeting. Its off the beaten path so off roading is required. It may take most of the night." Diego tapped his phone without looking up. "I've sent the coordinates now. The GPS will lead there. We have business to attend to. Do you have any further requirements?"

The car was quiet for a moment whilst the driver studied the map. "No Sir. I'll let you know when we arrive."

"Good." Diego tapped another button and the privacy screen closed them off from the driver. Diego continued tapping on his phone but aimed a sideways glance at Max. Max knew the exact meaning of that look. He was off target massively. The encounter with the girl in the store had shaken him, and they couldn't afford distractions from their goal.

"You're right Max. The deodorant part is interesting. What about her scent was off? Why would you try to cover up a scent trail from a stranger with no interest in you?" Diego's eyes slid back to his phone, but Max could tell he wasn't really looking at it as his fingers had stopped typing. Max's brain stopped thinking about how nice it would be to wrap his fist round the strange smelling beta's hair, stopped thinking about how soft the blonde strands looked and instead started piecing together what Diego was trying to hint at.

"You can't possibly mean… but her smell...?" Max's fists tightened. "you think that woman was an omega, don't you?".

"Yes, I do" Diego said bluntly and passed his phone over. "This is one of the reports of heat suppressant side effects. Under most test conditions the scent of an omega changed to that of a normal beta. But in some of the more…" Diego struggled to find the word, his nose wrinkling in disgust "extreme testing cases scents were found to change when an omega was deathly afraid or panicky to something less than beta."

Max understood the look of disgust, they both knew first hand just how extreme the testing could get. "So, you think Blondie back there is an omega. And an omega in this location would be having to get the heat suppressants from our dealer. That explains her behaviour. She was probably running from some alpha." Max leaned forward onto his knees. "You don't think that my omega and this possible omega know each other? What if the reason the old woman bought such a large quantity was to give to several omegas?"

"I don't know. But we can ask our contact when we arrive. One way or another we'll get the answers we need Max. Especially as our contact has brought another dealer in the area in." Max finished reading the report and passed the phone back. He leaned back in his seat, the vibrations of the car soothing the tension from his shoulders despite the uncomfortable niggling in the back of his head that he'd missed something important. Max breathed out and closed his eyes, trying to ignore the feeling. He knew well that they would get their answers. Even if their methods were reduced to Diego's new tools being used.


	7. Chapter 7

Lana woke up with the dawn. She was stiff and cold after a night in the car, and desperate for the bathroom. Cracking her neck she begrudgingly moved the blanket off of her and threw it into the back seat. This was going to be cold.

She reached into the glove box and grabbed hand gel and the toilet roll that was always stored there. Bracing herself she opened the door and found it had iced over in the night. "Fuck. Fuck fuck FUCK". On the final fuck her frantic pushing forced the door open, her breath immediately fogging in contact with the cold air. Nearly falling out the car she hurried over to a nearby tree and hastily undid her jeans.

"Brace for impact crew" she muttered to herself and pulled down her jeans. The cold air hit her bare skin and she squealed. She hastily thought of waterfalls, sinks overflowing and dripping taps in order to make herself ignore the cold and pee faster. She started walking back to her car before she bothered buttoning the jeans, frost crunching under her boots, desperate for the relative warmth of her car.

Pulling open her door she slid into the seat, shivering. With now numb hands she opened the glove box she put the hand gel and loo roll back and closed it. She needed to get to the check in spot in order to let her grandma know she needed to prepare to leave. Her hand twitched with indecision. She was close to the house; she could go and clear out the tunnel to ease her grandmother's arrival and turn on the old generator or she could go to the check point first.

Both had their risks. She chewed her lip thoughtfully, weighing up her options. If she went to the house first that meant she would have to go to that location twice in a short space of time; it meant disturbing her cars hiding place and possibly risking revealing its location. But it did mean that her grandma wouldn't have to worry about anything but getting safely to the house and settling in, her way easier through the passageway with a warm room waiting for her at the end. The image of her grandma having to make her way through the frigid forest and sweeping cobwebs out of the way, coughing on the musty air in the passage and leaning against the dirty wall filled Lana's mind. She tasted blood. She'd bitten down too hard at the thought of her grandma suffering in such a way. No she thought. The risk may be higher but the pay off was worth it if it ensured the comfort of the old lady. She reached and got the half empty bottle of water to her lips, trying to wash the coppery taste of her blood from her mouth.

Swirling it around before swallowing, she dabbed her lip with the back of her hand. A small speck of blood marked the skin of her knuckles. Lana sighed, just what she wanted when she'd be working in the cold: a healing scab that would most likely crack further in the frosty air. She turned on the engine on before putting on her seatbelt, petting the dashboard softly as if it were an old trusty dog when the engine spluttered at the cold. "Same Sal, same. Just a few more trips then you'll be covered up under a nice warm tarp for a while, how does that sound?". Her cars engine stopped making its groaning disagreements and Lana smiled at the timing, fancying that the car really did like the idea of having a rest. She put the car in reverse and turned around in the small clearing, heading back down the way she had come towards the abandoned logging trail. She knew she needed to head to a small warehouse that used to belong to one of the old logging companies that had been commandeered by her grandfather and his brother for use. Whilst the tunnel to Ralphs house was well built, she didn't want to risk arriving to find a collapse and then have to again leave the spot. As her Grandfather said, it was better to be well prepared and late in this life, than ill prepared and early in the next.

The journey down to the warehouse should of taken about half an hour, but it took Lana slightly longer as she'd got distracted in her own thoughts and missed the turning. She parked as close as she could to the old building, noting that it hadn't appeared to be disturbed in the years since she'd last been there, except by nature itself. She flipped the latch to open the boot of her car before stepping out into the still chilly air. Breathing in she took a deep steadying breath, willing the images of the past to not distract her from the task at hand. She walked to the door and lifted up the heavy latch, the rusty metal digging into already cold fingertips. It shifted a little then shuddered to a stop. Lana groaned in frustration and jiggled it furiously. The metal scraped against itself making a screeching moan of protest but moved a little more and stopped again. "You bastard I do NOT have time for this!" she grasped the latch in both hands and pulled with all her strength. Another grating sound and she stumbled backwards as the latch opened and the door swung towards her. "Ha! Victory!" Lana grinned. It felt nice having something go her way, even if it was just a power struggle with an inanimate object.

Walking inside she was greeted with slightly stale air which had that old musty smell that old wooden structures often had. Slivers of light streaked across the floor from the gaps in the wooden walls, highlighting the dust motes that her movement had caused to dance through the previously still air. She stood in the centre of the room for a moment, head tilted up looking at the rafters with its abandoned chains where some form of pully system had once hung. She closed her eyes, squeezing them tightly shut, before opening them and walking to the left towards a small half walled off area, touching one of the hanging chains absent mindedly as she passed its hanging length. She vaguely remembered her Grandfather explaining what it for was all those years ago and wished she'd paid better attention to him. Entering the smaller storage area she spotted what she was looking for.

A thin layer of dust had formed over the tarp in the centre of the room. It was unobtrusive, identical to the other dust covered tarps covering abandoned equipment around the room. Unlike the other tarps only this one had the tools she needed. Pulling it off with a flourish Lana revealed 2 wooden crates underneath, the dust rising through the air like an insubstantial wall. She placed the tarp on top of one of the other odd covered shapes in the room and bent down to lift up one of the boxes. She didn't need to open it just yet, there was no point checking inside. She already knew it contained everything she'd need to make the tunnel safe if it was needed, including small pit props and shoring materials. It was a large box and heavy, and Lana suddenly felt very small, very alone and the closest she'd felt to powerless since the day her Grandfather was killed. It was going to take all her strength to move the crates and then shore up any tunnel damages. She breathed in a shuddering breath, willing back the tears that pricked in her eyes, and regretted it immediately. The dust she had disturbed made her cough, the tears she had tried to hold now streaming down her face as she struggled to breathe. Lana fell over from her crouch onto her ass on the dusty floor next to the crate and struggled to get her breathing back under control.

Wiping her eyes she pushed herself up, cursing at her stupidity of forgetting how much dust she'd disturbed. Arms stretched wide she held both corners of the crate, the feeling of the wood indenting into her skin taking her mind off of her still uneven breathing. Lana struggled to her feet, shoulders burning under the weight of the crate and stumbled to the car thanking her foresight of leaving the boot open. The crate landed with a dull thunk and she apologised to her car "Sorry Sal, didn't mean to drop it, its just bloody heavy!". Straightening up Lana sighed. One more crate to go. She walked back inside quickly, wanting to get the move done quickly before letting her muscles rest. As she bent down to pick up the next crate a drop of blood fell onto the floor in front of her, soaking into the dust covered ground. She licked her lip and the copper tang hit her tongue for the second time that day. As she'd predicted the bite from earlier had reopened from the strain of first the accidental coughing fit and then lifting the first crate. She rolled her eyes and picked up the second crate, sucking her lower lip into her mouth to prevent any more blood from falling.

This time Lana managed to not drop the crate into the boot of her car with as much force as the first. Standing straight she stretched her back out, feeling her muscles twinge at the movement. "Note to self, don't sleep in car and then move heavy items around. It will result in ouchies and a longing for a hot bubble bath" she groaned at her own words as the stepped into the warehouse one last time, past the still gently swaying chains in order to retrieve the abandoned tarp. "Oh Lana you temptress, why would you think of a bath when you're here and don't even know if the house has a bath tub?" she angrily snatched the tarp, dust from where it had rested again swirling in the meagre rays of sunlight. She turned round half way back to her car to give the smaller room a once over. Thankfully the dust layer on the tarps hadn't been so thick on the floor and therefore showed no sign of the two crates having originally been there, nor was there any indication of her being there either – no footprints left in the dust. She hurried out, closing the rusty metal latch on the door. As it squeaked Lana responded "Goodbye to you too". As she sat in her car Lana then thought to herself that she really needed to stop talking aloud to inanimate objects. Lana snorted at how ridiculous her musings would seem if anybody was around to hear her and smiled to herself as she drove off, thinking how her Grandma would chuckle to herself if she could see and hear her. Lana made her way back up the dirt track towards the main road and put on the radio. Soon she'd be able to see her Grandmother smile again, and the quicker she dealt with the tunnel and house, the sooner they would be reunited.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Happy reading all! Chapter 8 is currently underway! Thanks for all the comments, it makes my tiny heart sing!


	8. Chapter 8

They'd stopped at a small but modern motel after driving for another 3 hours. Max cracked his knuckles, cranky from being cooped up for so long. Diego had got a message from his contact that there had been a delay, the informant had given them the slip but was promised to be delivered tomorrow. Max paced up and down in his room trying to work out his frustration at the delay. He wanted to be tracking down his omega not wasting time resting.  
Breathing deeply he tried to be pragmatic. His blood had been up ever since the incident with the odd smelling beta. Annoyed at himself he turned on his heel and paced back towards the small bathroom. He slipped the Black Tshirt he was wearing over his head and threw it unceremoniously onto the bed. He kicked off his shoes next and unbuckled his belt before sliding out of his jeans and boxers in one swift motion. Leaning inside the shower stall he flicked the shower on, letting it come to temperature as he removed his socks. Max cracked his neck and stepped into the stream of water.

It was that blondes fault, he thought distractedly. If he'd been less worried about a stranger’s wellbeing and more worried about finding his omega he wouldn't of had to depend on Diego. He leaned his head against the cool tile as the warm spray of the water soothed his stiff muscles. His little omega. His cock started to stir at the thought. He was closing in on her and soon, maybe even as soon as a month he would have her. He growled in satisfaction and fisted his rapidly hardening cock. She would be in his bed, her scent mingling with his on the sheets as he fucked her. Closing his eyes he imagined her stretched out under him, frantic little mewls escaping her mouth as he fucked her, letting her feel the length of his cock. He imagined how wet and tight she'd be for him, how her fingernails would claw into his chest, his back, his forearms. Any part of him she could reach to anchor herself as she was stretched around him and thoroughly fucked. Jerking his hand faster Max imagined how her hair would be fanned out around her as her head was thrown back in ecstasy as she rode his cock. How he'd bury his hands in the blonde mane as he slammed his cock home harder and faster as she came over him. The thought of her contracting pussy pushed Max over the edge as he groaned his release, his cum splattering on the walls of the small shower stall. He finished washing off, some of the tension in his body dissipating from both the warm water and the after effect of his orgasm. Max turned the water off and stepped out of the cubicle, rolling his shoulders once. Much better he thought to himself as he towelled off and climbed into the waiting bed. It wasn't until the last vestiges of wakefulness we're leaving his body that his sleepy mind remembered that his omega wasn't blonde. She was brunette.

Max woke the next morning to the sound of Diego knocking loudly at his door. He felt like he'd dreamt something important but couldn't quite grasp at the thought. The feeling sent a slight nagging sensation in his stomach which he forcefully pushed aside. He rolled over and glanced at his phone. It was 7 in the morning. He groaned and rolled out of bed and opened the door.  
Diego walked in ignoring his friend's state of undress. They had both seen each other naked on many occasions over the years and both had become desensitised to others seeing them naked. Diego drew the curtain back flooding the room with cold autumn sunlight, highlighting the light brown walls. Max ran his fingers through his bed head tousling it further. "What's the news?"   
Diego walked towards the desk, placed a brown paper bag and a cup holder down and sat down in the chair." The informant has been reacquired. We leave in the hour. We're going into the mountains again to conduct business. Breakfast is bacon and egg and a hazelnut latte." Diego flashed one of his rare smiles at Max. "I do know how you love your caffeine fix"  
Max glared at Diego. Behind the normally expressionless exterior, if you didn't count "silently terrifying" as an expression, Diego had a wicked sense of humour and delighted in getting Max the fussiest girliest coffee he could. Last time it had been a Vanilla Chai Soy Mocha with a salted caramel shot. It had tasted disgusting. To add insult to injury Diego had made it himself by adding chai tea to the mocha. "It better not be fucking soy again Diego because I swear in the mood I'm in I'll throw this in your face." Glaring at a grinning Diego Max took a sip. Not soy. It was, he begrudgingly thought, quite tasty. Not that he'd ever admit this to Diego. Hell no. "Saved by the milk".  
Diego's smile turned into a full-blown grin as he turned in his seat, pulling his phone from his pocket. "Get dressed and eat and I'll update you on the situation."  
Max did as he was told. Diego was the only one who could tell him what to do and Max would listen. Listening to him had saved Max a lot of pain in the past and had helped him through some of the worst memories Max had the unfortunate tendency to relive in the middle of the night. Max took a bite of the bap and savoured the salty flavour of the bacon mixing with the creamy flavour of the egg. 

“So our contact had been outsourcing to a new dealer – the one who sold the suppressors to the old lady. Unfortunately – for him at least – the new guy freaked out and decided to run when he was informed we were coming to question him. Fortunately for us he was caught and now is an hour away in our original meet spot. The idiot actually tried flying out at the closest airport using his real ID. I think we might need to have a word with our contact about his new hires.”   
Diego glanced up again, a small smile directed at Max. “After all we may be supplying the black market but we’re not sloppy. We’re professionals.”

Max swallowed the last of the bap and grinned back at Diego. “Ah yes and what kind of professional are you again? I’m going to say a handy man with the looks of your tool kit.” Max gave him an obvious once over “A handy man with a very good tailor”. 

Diego rolled his eyes at this and continued “On a more serious note, do you want me to do the questioning or you? You’ve been off the last few day’s and I do not want another situation like we had when we were first let out.”  
Max’s grin faded instantly at the recollection. They’d been 18, let out after 2 years of intensive testing. They’d both been struggling to acclimatize back into society, but it hadn’t been until 3 months in when Max had broken the façade of normality. Max had nearly killed a man twice his age for mishandling a girl who looked remarkably similar to Lana. The same height, hair colour and build as that teenage girl he’d held open a door for all those years ago before trying to hunt her down as her heat had struck. Max only remembered flashes, of ripping the man’s hand off of the girl, of looking down on the man’s bloodied face, of seeing the bone peaking through the skin of the mans arm where he had broken it in his rage. Of being pulled off and drugged. Of waking up in the same white walled cell he’d spent the last 2 years in. Of realising that it hadn’t been his little omega, and that he’d wasted his precious hard earned freedom in a fit of needless rage.

Max focused on doing up the buttons of his shirt, taking several deep breaths before answering. “Thank you for your concern Diego but I will not go into a rage like I did before. It’s been 6 years and she won’t be there, and you will be. You’ve always grounded me before, I have no doubt you’ll be able to again. Tap me out as usual if you see me slipping too far.”  
Max looked up and met Diego’s concerned gaze. “I don’t want to lose myself when I’m so close to finding her. I don’t want her to be scared of me. I don’t want any more of those stupid fucking doctors testing or drugging me again.”  
Diego nodded once in understanding and started to walk towards the door. “I’ll meet you in the lobby in 5. Then we can find out what this guy knows. Hopefully it’ll get us one step closer you your girl.”   
With that he left Max to finish getting ready, shutting the door softly behind him.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hi all! Sorry to keep you hanging but here's chapter 8! I've been having writers block but finally managed to finish this!Enjoy!


	9. Chapter 9

It had taken Lana 4 trips to bring the tunnel supplies from her cars hiding place to the entrance to the tunnel. She was sweating profusely by the time she was ready to head in.   
Lana shook her head “should NOT of thought about a bath earlier Lana. Now look where it’s got you. Sweating like a whore in church and still hours away from being clean again. Idiot.”  
Lana shook up the torch she was holding and grit her teeth as she moved inside. Immediately she was attacked by cobwebs to the face. “SHIT SHIT SHIT NOOOO”.   
Lana left the tunnel she had just entered and frantically clawed at her face and hair, desperately trying to remove the sticky fibres and any of the bugs that made them their home.   
Lana sat down breathing heavily for a moment.   
This so wasn’t going to plan. At this rate she’d still be here at sunset and she didn’t want to be working on the tunnel in the dark. She sighed, glancing at her watch. It was just a little past 8am. She’d been up for almost 4 hours and was already exhausted. Lana picked up the stick lying next to her and poked at the Forrest floor, dislodging the pine needles and covering them with the still defrosting dirt. If she was going to do this, she needed a proper plan.   
“One...” she scratched it into the dirt. “Figure out a way to avoid destroying spider homes with your own face.”  
She glanced at the stick in her hand. It would be perfect for waving in front of her to remove them as she made her way through the tunnel.   
“Two...” the second numeral was scraped below the first.   
“Set up lamps so there ready to be put in the tunnel as you make your way along”.   
Lana knew these were all in the first crate she’d brought up, along with a tool kit and other miscellaneous items such as tarp, rope and a shovel.   
“Three... have a snack for a reward of organisational genius” Lana found herself smiling at her own joke, her mood picking up as she made a list. She’d always loved making lists, and the reward of ticking off the items.   
“Four, find out if tunnel has collapsed.”  
The next digits were added on.   
“Five, fix it like the strong independent Omega you are who don’t need no Alpha!”   
Lana got to her feet and brushed off her still slightly sore butt. Ignoring the recollection of why her butt was hurting she went and organised the lamps outside the entrance of the tunnel. Turning back she grabbed the tarp and rope out of the same crate making a crude sled where she lay down the tunnel fixing materials from the second box and the tool box from the first. Stretching she turned back to the tunnel entrance, picked up her torch, 2 lamps and made her way inside again, creeping down the slightly sloped floor of the tunnel with her stick waving in front of her. 

“Cigar for the lady...”. It had been about 20 minutes due to having to wave, and then clean, her spider stick when she came across the cave in.   
Lana smiled grimly, glad she had planned for this and had brought the supplies she needed with her.   
She placed the lamp down and her stick down, knowing that she would need both hands free to tug her tunnel fixing kit back with her.   
Turning round she headed back out the tunnel, passing the lamp she’d previously placed when the day light had disappeared on her way in.   
Making it outside again she crossed off number 4 on her dirt list with the tip of her finger.   
“Nearly there girl. Just keep going and you’ll be there soon.”  
Placing 2 extra lamps on her tarp-turned-sled she picked up the ropes and started hauling it towards the entrance to the tunnel, breath coming heavier under the strain.   
Lana had only been inside the tunnel for a few seconds when she heard it. A pained howl that echoed through the forest, reverberating through the passageway. Lana froze in her tracks, the hairs on the back of her neck standing on end. That howl didn’t belong to an animal. That howl belong to a man.   
Lana’s blood thundered through her ears, her mouth becoming dry, additional sweat beading on her face.   
Though still faint, that scream meant there was someone in the forest. The fact that it wasn’t cut off meant that the person who made it hadn’t been killed.   
Lana blinked, a bead of sweat running down her face. She needed to hurry to fix the tunnel so she could hide the entrance again.   
Rushing forward with a strength born of fear she dragged her tools along the tunnel, barely missing knocking over one of the lamps she’d carefully placed earlier. Lana had a new motivation. 

Reaching the cave in she hurriedly arranges the lamps to give her the best light and moved her tools off of the tarp. She knew she’d need it to drag the dirt that had fallen through away. She may not of read tunnel building for dummies but she knew enough from a mix of her grandfathers teaching and having her nose in whatever book she could get her hands on over the years to know that this was going to be a difficult and delicate process. Lana didn’t care that she had to move slowly and thoroughly in order to shore up the cave in, despite the fact that it ate away at the time. She only had one chance to get this right, and panic would not help her or her grandmother. The only thing Lana cared about was reaching the little house that awaited her. 

It was her last defence, the last safe place she and her Grandma could have from the world and it was in danger. She didn’t care that she wasn’t a strong Alpha dynamic. She was an Omega, to which a safe home meant everything and would not let it go down without a long and gruelling fight, her supposedly submissive nature be damned.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> How did you spend your weekend? I spent mine reading about how to make tunnels.... here’s the next chapter, and god isn’t Lana the strong independent woman you dream you could be?! As always, I hope you enjoy!


	10. Chapter 10

Max’s fist slammed into the mans jaw with a satisfying crunch. He half expected to feel Diego tugging him back but when he turned away from the man now spitting out blood, he saw Diego standing with his knuckles growing white at the force he was clenching his fists.  
They exchanged a look, one thunderous gaze meeting another. Diego understood and was holding himself back from hurting the man who was unfortunate enough to be their informant.

They’d arrived an hour ago at their meeting spot, an old logging storage building. Max had almost liked the place and had thought to himself as he’d stepped out of the car, glancing over the tips of the trees to the mountain slope beyond, that he might look into buying some land and setting up a cabin here for the days he needed to escape the oppressive bustle of the city.  
They’d gone inside through an irritatingly squeaky, slightly stiff door and found a dusty room with 3 men. The two that were standing were familiar to Max, as he had had dealings with them before but the one sat on a rickety old chair was unknown to him. Chains hung from the rafters clearly for moving long removed equipment but Max had a forbidding feeling he might find another use for them by the time the morning was over.  
Max and Diego had gone through the usual pleasantries with Karl and Robert Perko, the two alpha brothers who were key distributors in the state and who had hired the underling that was sat between them. A tall, well built beta who’s name was Rocco and who’s perfectly tailored suit showed signs of the fact that he had recently been taken down to the ground. Max had immediately taken a disliking to the man, there was something about him that wasn’t quite right. 

Max flexed his right hand, making the slightly bruised knuckles pop. He had been right in his first appraisal of the man. He had proved himself to be rude, disrespectful and down right uncooperative. Rocco had even gone so far as to insult both the Perko brothers running of the distribution business and Max himself. None of these things had made max loose his temper. No. It was the mans attitude towards the omegas who came to him for heat suppressants and the idea of using them as part of the payment that had made him snap.  
Rocco had spent the last hour describing each of the omegas in almost graphic detail, as Max had requested but the information Max wanted, the information about the older woman that he had told the Perko brothers in passing, he had yet to expand upon.  
Rocco coughed and then laughed behind him. “You know it’s funny, for your reputation Max, that the one thing that makes you loose your cool is the thought of fucking omegas as part of the payment for underground heat suppressors. Of course” he continued the smirk evident in his voice even without Max having to turn to look at him, “not all the omegas that come to me are fuck worthy...”  
Max froze and he saw Diego’s fists unclench again and his gaze move from Max and burn a hole into the man behind him.  
Max went cold and all the tension drained out of him.  
“Oh? Is that so. After wasting my time for oh” Max calmly turned around, glancing at his watch as he did so, the spot where his foot met the floor making a little swirl on the covering of dust that lay there. “Over an hour, you wish to now tell me about these unfuckable omegas? I assume by this you’re meaning the older ones who come to you who are passed having their own heat?”  
Out of the corner of his eye he saw Diego moving, bending down out of sight of Diego, opening up the brown leather briefcase that Max knew not to hold papers or a laptop, but the very tools Max had bought for him the other day. Diego had always been a smart alpha, both in business and in the art of manipulation. He knew how to sneak up on prey before it even knew it was prey. Before it knew, literally in some cases, what had hit it. 

Max looked up and stared directly into Rocco’s smug face and grinned. Rocco, being stupid and still amped up from the adrenaline from the punch grinned back. The Perko brothers, still stood behind Rocco exchanged an almost imperceptible glance. They knew an angry alpha when they saw one, and they knew that Max wasn’t just angry. He was near the crazed boiling point that had given him such a formidable reputation.  
Even so, they inched forward, knowing that once the beta sat before them figured it out too, he would smartly try to run as far and as fast as he could. This was something they would not allow a second time and was the reason they had found him directly themselves.  
You did not disappoint Maxim Genarri twice in one week.  
“That’s the one. It’s honestly amazing the information you can get from these old biddies. Especially about omegas just going into their first heat - and what Male doesn’t want to be an omega’s first?”  
Rocco spread his hands out, gesturing as he spoke.  
Max had a flash back to the first omega he’d seen in heat, the young teen girl where it had taken her unawares. Of seeing his Lana for the first time and the smell of slick and of absolute terror he’d smelt on her when she’d seen just how many males wanted to be her first.  
His eye twitched but he managed to maintain his calm.  
“Of course Rocco. I suppose you also have an idea on how to use this to our monetary advancement too?”  
Rocco leant forward eagerly.  
“See now we’re actually talking Max. There’s that respect that should be given to a future business partner. Plus Max it’s not just an idea it’s a plan in action. I know that it works!”  
Max crouched down in front of the man before him and said quietly “and how do you know they it works? Did you just decide that you’d infringe onto my business? Using my contacts, my drugs, my customers?”.  
The excited expression faded from Roccos face, for the first time the smell of fear mixing with the combined scents of dusty air and pine.  
Max’s eyes flicked up, meeting Karl and Robert’s eyes and the brothers moved as one, pinning Rocco to the chair.  
Max stood, brushing the dust that was swirling in the air off of his trousers. Max took his time and walked across the room, ignoring the sounds of Rocco’s struggling and walked into the small room attached there. 

He looked around the room. Something about it calmed his rapidly beating heart. He breathed in deeply and noted the lack of fear in the room and something...else. A scent so faint he couldn’t put his finger on it. Max scented a few more times and walked around the room, eyes taking in every detail. Something was off, but he didn’t have the time to figure out what. He flipped up the tarp on the squarest of the covered shapes in the room and was relieved to find a sturdy looking crate. Removing the tarp completely he lifted up the crate, arms straining slightly at the weight.  
Walking back into the main room he accidentally brushed one of the chains with his shoulder, making the links clink together. As Max stopped in front of Rocco, who had clearly been struggling to get out of the chair, dropping the crate at his feet he had an odd sense of deja vu. It was as if he had brushed against those chains before, and recently. Max shrugged the thought off as he looked down at the scared man before him.  
He couldn’t of planned it better than if they were in his basement at home. The crate reached just a little lower than his waist and was the perfect night for what he and Diego were going to do next.  
Max moved around to Roccos left and Diego padded to replace him to face Rocco head on.  
Max knew he would take a back seat on this one.  
No one knew how to cause pain quite like Diego did, he should know. In their youth they had been forced to fight over and over again, pushed to their limits. Max touched his nose, feeling the slight dip where Diego had broken it in their very first fight. He grinned. Rocco had no idea what was about to hit him.  
Well, Max thought as he focused again on the scene before him, technically he did know what was about to hit him. It was hard to miss what was about to hit him as Diego flipped the hammer in his hands. Diego glanced at him and Max knew that it was time to get answers.  
Leaning down he growled in Rocco’s ear, the calm tone from before gone entirely. “So you think that you can fuck me around for hours, try to run from me and now say that you’ve started using my drugs for your own side line operation?” Max tsked as he straightened, reaching down to move Rocco’s hand onto the flat surface of the crate pinning it with ease even as the man struggled beneath him.  
“Rocco, Rocco, Rocco. What ARE we to do with you?” Max grinned at the man and Rocco paled further. This was the grin that told Rocco that the rumours about Maxim Genarii were true. He was an alpha constantly on the edge of turning rogue, an alpha who’s savage and possessive nature would delight in the pain that Rocco knew he was about to endure.  
“Diego, any idea what to do with this piece of shit so he spills all of his secrets so prettily for us?” Max said the words without breaking eye contact with Rocco, his grin widening even further, a shark who smelt blood in the water. 

“Funnily enough, I have the perfect idea.” Diego hunkered down and stared into Rocco’s eyes, forcing the mans attention away from the slightly manic looking growling alpha to his unnervingly still counterpart.  
“You will tell us all we want to know and more on the count of 3 or you will suffer the consequences. You will tell us all about your outside operation, it’s running time and who else is involved. You will also most importantly tell us about the old omega’s, their buying and of any omegas of heat age associated with the elders.”  
Rocco nodded.  
“Three”. 

That was all the warning Rocco had before the alpha in front of him had spun, raising his arm and bringing the happier down on his pinned hand. Bone splintered, blood squirted and over the sound of the gruesome crunch of flesh being mangled a scream of pure agony echoed around the dusty room and the forest beyond.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hi all! Sorry for such a long time without posting, writers block is the worst! Hope you enjoy our boys being bad


	11. Chapter 11

Lana cried. The tears streamed down her face, mingling with the sweat and dirt there. She didn’t care that her fears cut streaks down her grubby face. Lana didn’t even care that the salt in her tears stung her chapped lips. She didn’t care that she had fixed the tunnel well before dark and had had time to re-hide the entrance and her supplies.  
The only thing Lana cared about was the neatly stacked wood pile in front of her, leaned against the side of the drying hut.  
She cared about the woodpile because it was one of the last bits of evidence that her grandfather had existed. That he’d lived, breathed and loved.  
That his love and hard work were going to help her and her grandmother have a home once again.  
Lana stood there trying to catch her breath as the tears kept flowing, and rubbed the back of one grimy sleeve under her streaming nose. This wasn’t getting her anywhere. Her grandfather would of already been in the house, checking everything worked and making sure the supplies and the generator were still in order.  
Lana squared her shoulders and walked towards the small house. Tonight she was going to use the first of the firewood her grandfather had prepared. She was going to make the building before her into a home for her grandmother and herself. She didn’t care what she needed to do or how exhausted she felt already. She wasn’t moving again. This wasn’t just going to be another house. This was going to be her home. 

It was dusk by the time Lana finally had the time to stop and eat a proper meal. Lana’s hair was still dripping wet from her fast shower. It had had to be fast due to the fact that whilst the solar thermal panels on the roof provided hot water she didn’t want to use it all up as with the short winter days the sun was scarce. Carrying a mug of soup she sat down crosslegged in front of the fire, her back to the edge of the slightly worn out sofa.  
Blowing over the rim of the mug to cool the tomato soup she gazed into the crackling logs before taking a sip. It still burnt her tongue slightly but the warmth it gave as it slid down her throat was worth the pain. For the first time in weeks she didn’t feel so hopeless. The cabin was in good condition, she didn’t find a single leak anywhere - either in the roof or when she’d turned the water back on. None of the food in storage had gone off or been eaten by rodents and the moths hadn’t gotten to the bedding or clothes stored in the closets. She’d dusted and aired the whole place, which was the only task that had gone slightly awry when the windows in the loft had let in such a breeze Lana had found herself hit in the face by a windswept blind. Lana rubbed the small bruise on her forehead, uncrossed her legs and brought her knees to her chest, perching her mug on top of them, its warmth burrowing through the fabric of the oversized tracksuit she’d found that still had a hint of her grandfathers scent on. She wished that they’d come here earlier and just sent her off into the wilderness for her heats. It would of been much easier than moving every time. She took another sip of her soup. Could’ve, would’ve, should’ve, she thought to herself and shook her head slowly. There was no point in dwelling on the past now, as easy as it was to do so late at night and in her tired state. Lana yawned. She really did need to go to sleep. She glanced up the stairs where the loft room lay. It seemed so far away and she felt like a kid again, where climbing upstairs seemed like climbing Mount Everest. 

Sipping the last of her soup she savoured the warmth of the fire and the smell of her grandfather. It was almost as if he was there with her, holding her and telling her how proud he was that she’d managed to do all she had today. A smile on her lips, she made her way to the darkness of the small kitchen and put the mug in the sink. She’d wash up in the morning she thought, much easier than doing it tired and she’d have more natural light to see what she was doing then. There just wasn’t enough from the meagre moonlight coming through the windows. Windows, she thought suddenly, and checked to make sure that they were locked as she couldn’t remember if she’d locked them earlier. Lana sighed in relief, her heart beat slowing down. She had closed them already. Nothing was going to come in through them in the night. After checking the back door was similarly bolted Lana turned around and made her way back into the living room closing the kitchen door behind her before she sank down onto the sofa as a wave of tiredness washed over her.  
Maybe she’d just sleep here tonight. She didn’t have the strength to go make up the bed properly upstairs and her legs groaned in protest at even the thought of climbing the stairs again. Besides, the sofa was so much more comfortable than her car at any rate. She was warm, fed and in a place where no one could get at her. As she pulled the quilt she’d found in the closet upstairs off of the back of the sofa where she’d left it earlier, Lana thought the only thing missing from her new home to make it perfect would be the gentle snores of her grandmother from the next room. Drifting off to sleep Lana heard a tiny purr and sleepily figured it was her tired brain using the memory of her grandmothers purr to help lull her to sleep. But it wasn’t her grandmothers purr. It was her tiny purr that caused the vibrations to spread through her chest, she realised. Her last thought before succumbing to her exhaustion was that the last time Lana had made that sound was when her grandfather had been alive.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry for the delay in posting my lovelies! Writers block + ridiculous work load = one frustrated workload (I mean writer not workload lol - can you tell my brain is frazzled?!). Hope you enjoyed this one, and it warmed your heart. It’s not all doom and gloom for Lana... for now...  
> as always your comments give me that buzz and make me want to write more!


	12. Chapter 12

Max grinned to himself on the way back to town. Sure, he and Diego had matching bloodstains on their clothes, and sure Rocco wouldn’t use his hand again. Sure, the high of the blood letting would have him on an aggressive edge for a few days. But Max didn’t care. He had the information he wanted and was so much closer to finding his runaway omega. Even better, his little Lana may even be in the town he was going to. In any case he knew her grandma had frequented the small town they were headed to over the past 4 months. All for the little white yellow pills that Max helped to supply. Max hummed happily to himself. The thought that indirectly it was he who had been helping his omega avoid exposing herself to other alphas gave him a twisted satisfaction. Yes it had also kept him from her too but this was of little consequence now. He’d have her soon and all these years would of been worth it. He’d finally have the girl he’d longed for over a third of his life.  
Diego interrupted his thoughts.  
“When you’ve settled and I’ve tidied up I’ll be meeting with the Perko brothers. We’re going to release the omegas that stupid shit for brains Rocco decided to kidnap. I’ve already contacted Dr Shaulk. Let me know if you want him to check out Lana when you find her. “  
Max nodded.  
“If you need some extra muscle you know where I am Diego.”  
Diego passed a small smile to Max.  
“On stake out looking for your own omega, practically shaking with a mix of anticipation and caffeine over consumption?”  
Max laughed, “Exactly Diego. Thanks for the offer, hopefully we won’t need the Dr but if shes been on the run all these years who knows how healthy she’ll be.”  
Max’s face darkened at the thought of Lana being malnourished, and further still at the thought of the abuse that the other omegas must have suffered already. “Have him on standby. I fear that your omegas will need him more than my Lana”.  
Diego nodded, all humour gone from his expression. Neither male liked the thought of omegas in forced heats. They’d seen it too many times in their past for it to give them any sense of excitement, only the dread that the creatures they’d find wouldn’t be able to be saved.  
“You can take them to my building. You know that I have the whole floor below they can have for themselves. Feel free to knock through an extra door your floor next door if you need to.”  
“Thanks Max. I just might. Mine isn’t habitable for omegas, especially those as traumatised as these are going to be. But it will be useful to have an extra door to check on them - even if you are only next door.”  
Max smiled at his old friend.  
“Well Diego, it’ll just make it easier for you to come and steal my beer of an evening won’t it?”  
Diego tilted his head and cracked one of his half grins at Max. “If I were you Max, I’d remember to check my wine cellar too. You might find it depleted”.  
Snorting, Max rolled his eyes and settled back into the plush leather of the car’s upholstery as it hurtled down the mountain.  
Max closed his eyes. He needed a shower after today. Whilst he couldn’t wait to start scoping the down for hints of Lana or her grandmother, he knew that being covered in a bloody suit was not the first impression that he wanted to give. Nor would it help him blend in. At all. No, this time Max would be smart and channel his inner patient Diego. After all, what was a few hours compared with a life time of mates bliss? 

A few hours later Max walked out the motel shower, towelling his dark hair dry. The irony that the little old lady had been seen most recently in the very town he had stopped in the night before was not lost on him.  
Picking up his phone he checked for any updates. Two little notifications flowed brightly on his screen. One was about the business but that could be dealt with later. The other immediately darkened his mood and he growled, flinging the phone onto the bed.  
Of course they’d try to ruin things. He breathed deeply through his nose and sat down hard on the bed, not caring that he was getting the bedding wet, and shoved his hands through his hair trying to control the flashing images behind his eyes. His skin on the back of his hand tingled and he scratched at it, the ghostly memory of the cannula that had been his companion for many years. A stinging disinfectant smell wafted up his nose on his next deep breath and he coughed.  
Omega, think about your omega.  
Blonde hair flashed in between the darker images, a grainy photo of a half concealed smile. The taste of her slick on his tongue.  
Max’s breathing calmed slowly, fists uncurling from their tight grip on his hair. He wasn’t in the facility any more and his parents hadn’t had control of him for years. He was in a motel, the yellow brown colours swimming into focus before him a dramatic difference to the white tiled walls of his teen years.  
With a shaky breath Max pushed himself off of the bed, bending down to snag a pair of clean boxers from his bag. It comforted him that next to his open bag, the smaller pre-packed omega bag he had sat neatly but it’s side. It Reminded him that it would all be worth it in the end - all the years of pain, the subsequent years of acclimatising to society and building himself up, the years hunting for his elusive omega.  
Worth it, because soon his life would be changed for the better. That the loneliness would be permanently put at bay and his Lana would be safe under his protection. Despite himself he felt his mood darken. He had to be the one to catch her, he didn’t want to think what she would go through if anyone else, rogue alpha, corporation or government, captured her.  
The thought awoke a sense of urgency in Max, who hesitated slightly when going to his wardrobe. He wanted to make a good impression on Lana’s grandmother, which would of normally meant wearing one of his go to black suit options, but in this town he’d stand out like a sore thumb wearing that type of get up. Instead he picked his smart jeans, a black form fitting tshirt and his leather jacket. He snorted to himself. He’d definitely blend in but he doubted the biker look would go down well for the civilised alpha preference he guessed the old lady would prefer.  
Max shrugged his jacket on, the smell of leather hitting his nose as he leaned to grab the keys Diego had left him, wallet, phon and emergency omega bag. Optimistic, but better than being caught out.  
Closing and locking the door behind him Max strolled into the parking lot, gravel crunching under his boots. Max squinted his eyes against the afternoon sun that bathed the carpark in an orange glow and pressed the unlock button on the key.  
A black 4x4 flashed its headlights invitingly at him.  
He shook his head and grinned. He needed to buy Diego a bottle of scotch to thank the man. As normal, Diego had picked the perfect car. New enough to be a good safe drive, but old enough not to draw too much attention. The fact that it could go off road was an even better bonus incase he had to go onto the mountain roads. 

Twirling the keys round his finger, Max walked towards the car. Flipping the boot he put his Omega bag inside before closing it. Walking round the side of the car he typed out a quick message to Diego. “Love you, my big strong alpha. Whatever would I do without you? Xx”. Max grinned at his phone, knowing Diego would hate it popping up on his phone. Climbing inside he settled in, setting up his phone so it linked to the cars bluetooth. The speakers chimed and “BigD” flashed up on his phone, the name followed by several pink heart emojis.  
“Fuck off Princess Pants. Going down the mountain to find omegas. Will be 5 hours away so don’t do anything stupid.”  
Max Grinned. Getting on Diego’s nerves was one of his favourite past times. He texted back a quick “Keep me updated and call if you need more backup” adding a kissing emoji at the end for good measure.  
Turning on the engine, Max pulled out of the carpark the gravel crunching under his tyres giving away to smooth tarmac as he made his way into town. He rolled down the window, the cold mountain air hitting his face and couldn’t help but grin. This had been the biggest step forward in years. Finally, things were looking up for him. 

The drive into the small town only took half an hour to reach the town and another 10 to scout out the small high street. Max had settled upon a small diner which was part way along the high street with wide windows which gave him a view of both the grocery store opposite and a good portion of the rest of the street.  
Sitting in a corner where he had a view of the door, the street and the diner he waited, cup of coffee in one hand phone in the other.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Oh boy I have not had much motivation to write recently....but I have written ahead and wrote a super cute scene which you are going to adore...once I catch up with myself! Good news is that Max and Lana are incredibly close to meeting now!


	13. Chapter 13

Lana woke up on the floor, her whole body tangled in the quilt that she’d managed to cocoon about herself in her sleep. Managing to extract an arm she wiped the small amount of drool from her mouth and sat up. At some point in the night she’d clearly kicked the cushions off of the sofa and then fallen off of it herself. Yawning, she shook her head trying to clear some of the grogginess.   
I must’ve been really tired to not wake myself up from that fall, she thought as she took in her surroundings. The fire was currently smouldering embers but the cosy lounge had managed to retain its warmth over the course of the night. 

Detangling herself Lana stood up, having to catch herself as she stumbled, still half asleep. Throwing the cushions back into the sofa haphazardly and putting the quilt in a semi folded but mostly crumpled heap on the sofa arm, Lana made her way into the kitchen. Opening the cupboard she pulled out a glass and a small pack of cereal. Filling the glass full of water from the sink she took several long gulps, draining the glass to help clear the musty morning breath sensation from her mouth. Filling it up again, she placed the glass on the side and then rinsed out the mug she’d used for soup the previous night. Drying off her hands Lana looked out the window. It looked to be a clear fresh day. A few fluffy clouds blew slowly across the blue expanse of sky and she grinned as she saw a bird flirting from tree to tree.   
Her heart lifted at the sight of its freedom and at that moment she felt her heart swell. Here they could be almost completely self sufficient. When she went to collect her Grandma she’d stock up on supplies. She glanced at the ground in the small clearing outside where some old posts stood. She’d need to not only stock up on long lasting food items but also get some chicken wire. When she got into town she’d go to the hardware store there and get everything she needed to help make a coop and re-start the old vegetable plot. When winter was over she’d venture back to town to see if she could buy some chickens. Lana’s smile broadened imagining the small yard full of cute little hens and chicks. Fresh eggs for breakfast and the occasional roast chicken for dinner.   
Opening the small cereal pack she tipped the Frosties straight into her mouth and made her way upstairs, crunching happily on the flakes as she went. 

The staircase and the master bedroom had been dusted and the carved wooden bed frame gleamed from her polishing. With the big double bed made up with fresh bedding, Lana fell headfirst into her work. Despite being tall for an omega, the bed had taken it out of her due to having to stretch to her fullest extent to reach all the corners and lean this way and that, aggravating her sore muscles from yesterday.   
Using one foot and then the other, Lana kicked off her shoes so they landed with a soft thump onto the wooden floor. Pulling the rest of her legs onto the bed she grabbed the blanket lying at the foot of the bed and snagged two of the pillows, too tired to crawl under the duvet itself. Curled in a ball, one pillow half under her head and the other between her knees, Lana drew the blanket over her head tucking herself in for a nap. She deserved it, she thought. She’d only have a little nap before driving back into town and picking up the last few supplies she needed and arranging picking up her grandmother. No sense in driving tired and potentially ruining things. Lana smiled happily and snuggled deeper into the bedding. 

Lana woke slightly sweaty and confused, still in the ball she’d fallen asleep in. Groggily she sat up and pushed the soft blanket from her face. Rubbing her eyes with the back of her hand she looked around the room. She frowned, trying to figure out what the difference was. It wasn’t wrong exactly but something was niggling at her. Leaning back on her elbow she scanned the room again, and sat up with a jolt. The light. The light was what was wrong. The shadows in the room were much longer than they had been, the sunshine filtering through the windows a much paler colour than it had been earlier. Lana scrambled out of bed, throwing off the tracksuit bottoms of her grandfather’s she still had on and shimmying into a pair of jeans. Muttering “fuck, fuck fuck” repeatedly under her breath she grabbed her shoes and ran down the stairs, clutching at the banister at the bottom when she skidded on the wooden floor in her socks. Righting herself she flung herself into the sofa lacing up her shoes as quickly as she physically could. Running to the kitchen she yanked open the back door, grabbing her keys off of the hook and slamming the door behind her. Fumbling with the keys she locked it frantically and jogged the 10 minutes to the tunnel entrance. The adrenaline made Lana’s hands shake as she pushed the branches concealing the home side entrance and flipped the catch on the door behind it. Breathing in the slightly musty air, Lana hurried along knowing from the little glowing screen of her watch that she’d over slept by 4 hours and if she didn’t get there by early evening her grandma would be gone.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Oh boy travelling has meant I haven’t been able to work on this as much as I’d of liked but here’s another short chapter for you!


	14. Chapter 14

Max was on his third cup of coffee and had decided to go and stretch his legs for a while before anything interesting happened. He’d spotted several old ladies tottering about along the high street but none had caught his attention so far. Sliding some bills under his menu, he nodded at the waitress as she walked past him towards a booth in the corner, carrying a tray laden with stacks of pancakes for the family sat there. The little boy’s gleeful chuckles at the waitresses question of who’s were the chocolate chip pancakes followed him through the door as he went out into the brisk air.   
Glancing both ways he crossed the street shrugging his shoulders to make his coat sat more comfortably. Entering the grocery store he made a bee line to the fruit and veg isle. He’d already decided to go back and have pancakes for dinner at the diner - he was an adult and was allowed to after all - so needed to pick up something healthy to snack on later. 

Grabbing some apples and a pre-made fruit salad he headed towards the checkouts, cutting down the canned goods isle. A little ahead of him was a small statured lady reaching for a can on the top shelf, her fingertips straining, but only just scraping the top. Without thinking, Max set down his groceries, and grabbed the van that was in easy reach for him and turned to the woman with a grin. His grin froze and almost slipped as he took in the woman’s face for the first time.   
It was none other than Lana’s grandmother, Shara Tyne. And she was almost glaring at him, her mouth scrunched up into a thin line of disapproval. Recovering quickly, he gave the tin a little shake as he held it out. “Here you go ma’am. Sorry to intrude but I could see you just couldn’t quite reach.” Max grinned sheepishly, turning on the charm factor, hoping that his shock didn’t show and that his heart that was trying to beat itself out of his chest couldn’t be heard by the woman stood in front of him.   
The line of her lips relaxed slightly at his apology, and she reached out a lightly trembling hand to take the can from him and put it in her basket.   
“Thank you. I was close to putting my basket down and scaling the shelves myself, so it’s lucky that you came along as I don’t have my climbing boots on me”. The line of her mouth quirked slightly, and Max was reminded of the photo he had of Lana smiling. It was easy to tell that they were related close up.   
Max kept his face as straight as he could when he replied.   
“As much as I’m sure you’d be a fine climber, I don’t think the middle shelf would be a comfy place to make base camp so I’m glad to of been able to provide some assistance. Whilst I’m up at the peak of this tin mountain, is there anything else you’d like me to get?”.  
The seriousness of his tone made the old lady’s lips twitch further.   
“Why thank you young man, but I think my pack mule is at full capacity” she replied, gesturing to her basket. Max looked at it, the old woman’s fist turning white with the effort to carry it and shaking slightly, just has her other hand had been. The basket was only half full. Max tried to figure out if it was fear or another reason the lady was shaking. He didn’t think it was fear - this old lady was as tough as nails. He filled away his observations and smiled “of course. Whilst I wouldn’t want to insinuate my pack mule’s skills are superior, I know for a fact that it can carry at least another half a basket if needed?”.  
Grey brows creased down in thought and the woman shifted her weight, wincing slightly before sighing and nodding her head.   
“I’m sure your mule is a very sturdy beast but mine has served me well so far, so I’ll stick to what I know thank you”.   
Max bent down and picked up his groceries.   
As he stood he nodded his head at the lady “you’re welcome, ma’am. Before I head to buy these are there any other peaks I can reach for you?”.  
Shara grinned at him, making her look years younger and shook her head. “Enough mountaineering for me today thank you. Off to the check out we go.”   
Max slowed his pace down to match the ever-so slightly limping woman beside him. They reached the check out at the same time, and Max gestures that she should go first. Throwing him a grateful glance, she let her basket fall on the counter with a light thunk, and pulled out a folded up bag from inside her handbag. Opening it up Max grinned.   
Shara noticed this and snapped a “what? It’s useful” at him.   
“Oh no ma’am, I know. My grandma had one exactly the same. It just reminded me of home, and how you all seem to have identical bags. Do they hand it out at a grandma convention on the birth of your first grandchild?”.  
An eyebrow raised once again. “You are very cheeky. If you were my granddaughter you’d be getting a tongue lashing for that.”  
Max’s grin spread. He’d just confirmed that this woman definitely had a grandchild and a grand daughter at that. Self satisfaction spread, he was now 100% sure that this woman was indeed Shara Tyne.   
“Sorry ma’am. I meant no offence.”   
“Mhmm. You better not have.” Hefting her bag over her shoulder she turned and walked towards the door, throwing one last “have a good day” over her shoulder as she limped away.   
Max smiled. The groceries she had bought were clearly to tide the woman over. Alongside the can of soup there had been some bread, milk and a microwaveable dinner for one. The cashier asked if he’d like a bag or if he’d brought one like the lady in front of him. Instantly the grin was gone, Max’s face going back to the stoney expression he normally wore. The smile on the cashiers lips faded as he took in the change in the large man before him. “I need a bag”. The gruff tone combined with the emotionless expression made the cashiers hands shake slightly whilst getting a bag. 

Max payed quickly and left. Glancing up and down the street he searched for Shara Tyne and caught a glimpse of her brown coat disappearing around a corner. Hurting forward, Max was glad to find that he had an excuse to follow her - the carpark he’d parked in earlier was just round that corner. With an extra spring in his step he strode forward and knew he’d be rewarded by finding the old lady and her car. If he had the car in sight he could get the numberplate and be able to track it.   
Turning the corner he nearly tripped over but caught himself just in time. Looking down to see what had caused him to slip he found a can of soup- the very can he’d picked up earlier.   
Brows drawn down, he looked up and found Shara Tyne slouched against a wall, groceries spilled along the pavement.   
“Ah shit”.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Ahh sorry it’s been so long - I hope this makes up for it ;) as always your support and comments give me life


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